Header for bottle filling machines



o. PowLEY 2,396,603

HEADER FOR BOTTLE FILLING MACHINES Filed Aug. 8, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 March 12, 1946.

a K m zwgbbb didn-GGG 0m: Pow/.Ex HTTORNEY. Jr?

March 12, 1946.

o PowLEY HEADER FOR BOTTLE FILLING MACHINES Filed Aug. 8, 1941" 2 sheets-sheet 2 /NVENTQR OrTo Pow/.Ex HTTORNEXWJJM Patented Mar. 12, 1946 UNITED sTATEsIPATENT OFFICE HEADER FOR BOTTLE FILLING MACHINES Otto Powley, Sunderland, England, assgnor to VRobert Powley & Sons Limited, Sunderland,

England, a company of Great Britain Application August 8, 1941, Serial No. 406,059

1 Claim. (Cl. 226-124) This invention relates to headers or bottle lling elements for bottle filling machines of the kind having a tank for containing the liquid to be fed into the bottle. These headers have sliding tubes and valves, operated by movements of the bottles as they pass through the machine, to control the flow of liquid from the supply tank into the bottles and the outflow of air from the latter as they are being iilled, the sliding parts and valves of the headers being returned to their normal positions by springs or the like as the mouths of the bottles move down from their contact with the headers. The headers are usually connected to the bottom of the tank and extend partly within and partly beneath the bottom of the tank. Such machines work at a high rate of speed and owing to this high speed wear soon occurs between the rapidly moving sliding parts of the headers and their guiding means and liquid having access to such sliding parts exterior of the bottom of the tank can then escape or leak.

The object of my invention is to provide a dripless header wherein no glands are used with which the liquid can come in contact either when the machine is working or at rest and so prevent leakage by making it impossible for any liquid in the tank to have access to any sliding parts exterior of the bottom of the tank.

I attain this object by mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figs. 1 to 3 illustrate, in vertical section a head er particularly suitable for lling bottles with non-gaseous liquids such as milk these figures showing the progressive movements of the sliding parts of the header operated by the rising of the bottle.

Fig. 4 is a modied form of a bottle filling valve of the header.

Fig. is a diagram of the liquid supply tank.

In these drawings like parts are indicated by the same reference characters.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 3:

My improved header comprises a positively closed chamber situated below the plane of the tank bottom I, the outside A of said chamber being in constant communication with the liquid in the tank. The lower part 3 containing the chamber is secured to a spider 2 immersed in the liquid and held between these two parts is a flexible transverse diaphragm 4 forming the top of the positively closed chamber.

The head of the spider forms a bearing for a slidable tube 5 adapted to evacuate air from the bottle as it is being filled. This air tube is concentrically arranged within a slidable filler tube 6 of larger diameter for which a sleeve 1 of the lower part of the positively closed chamber forms a bearing in which it can slide, the sliding movement of each of the above tubes is spring governed by springs, respectively 8 and 9 as will be hereinafter described.

The upper end of the filler tube extends just through a central orifice of the diaphragm which is liquid-tight and is connected to said tube by annular washers and packings IIJ carried by thev tube 6 or in any other suitable way so that the liquid which lls the spider and lies on the upperv surface of the diaphragm 4 can only flow through thevannular mouth of the ller tube formed between it and the inner air tube and ow down the annular space I-I between the two tubes.

The annular inlet of the tube 6 is freely open to the liquid in the tank. v

The air tube 5 extends from the bottom of the liquid supply tube through the latter andinto the tank to a point above that of the level X of the liquid,fthat is to say into the air space above the liquid. The lower end of said tube is provided with a suitable valve I2 adapted to open and close the outlet of the liquid supply tube, for instance the valve may be a conical or other suitably shaped member the seat for which is formed by the lower end of the supply tube thus forming an annular conical outlet port for the liquid, as shown in the drawings.

At the upper end of the air tuberis an air outlet valve. This may comprise a valve casing I3 screwed on the top of the air tube 5 and having in its upper end a vent hole I4 normally closed by a ball I5 pressed, by a spring I6 seated on the top of the tube against said vent. When the tube 5 is initially raised the valve casing moves upwards and the ball is pressed downwards against its spring on meeting a fixed seat I1 over the point of which the vent hole can pass so that the vent hole becomes open and the air from said tube can escape into the air space of the tank.

Fixed to the outer circumference of the liquid supply` tube adjacent its lower end is a stop I8 for the mouth of the bottle I9. This stop is provided with a resilient cushion 20 against which the rim of the mouth of the bottle will abut and form an airtight joint when the bottle has been raised to the position for lling.

I:Between this stop and the base of the guide sleeve of the lower portion of the diaphragm chamber and surrounding the filler tube is the spiral spring 9 having a downward thrust and between the upper end of the filler tube and an adjustable abutment 22 arranged on the air tube is the second spiral spring 8 surrounding the air tube, and having an upward thrust.

Above the bearing for the air tube in the head of the spider a second adjustable abutment 2l is arranged on the air tube.

, The two abutments 2| and 22 limit the extent of the sliding movement of the air tube 5 in the upward and downward direction respectively and can be adjusted; accordingly as theyf are adjusted:

l2 will commence to open as shownizrFigala'nd will close again when the bottle is filled and moves downwards from the bottle mouth stop I8 and' allows the sliding membersof the: header: to retuizn'h to'. their.l normal, positions: under the action of the; springs. the air valve: beingy now' closed` again asl-shown in Fig;. 1.

'Ihevprovision of theA diaphragmA prevents rac3 cess of the liquid to the sleeve bearingglbeneath the tank for the ller tube soieven if v.this-bearing becomes'worn no liquid can escape; itY is tov be' remarked" however that; when the bottle isilled and moves; downwards a' small bead of theA liquid* may be formed onzthebottom of the ller tube, valve but thisA bead will adhere by' suction toLthelbottomof thefvalve. l2 until lche nextbott-leofthe series comesY into position to. be` filled: in its turn;

As diagrammatically shown in Fig..5the'tank or` liquidl container in the machine is in the form of a cylinder 22a rotatable about its ,vertical axis, this conveys the header or headers. connected thereto round in av clockwise orA anti-clockwise direction. A tube 23 for admitting the liquid'into the cylinder passes through the base thereof on the; axis of" the cylinder and forms a. bearing member about which thel cylinder can rotate; Within the cylinder is anon-rotatablehorizontal diskcor thelike 24, which' is above the'level off' the liquid' in the cylinder` and on thev under facer of thisdisk aretwo annularcam tracks'25i and 2B designed tolopen and-close at'determine'dint'ervals, the respectivegas andliquid valves25a; 26a of the header or headers as the latter travel roundithe operating means for thesevalves-contact-ing with said' cam tracksA wherebylther valves are" respectively opened or closedin a definite sequence; Instead ofcontinuouscam-tracks, in divldual abutments may be provided'.

The disk 2l is carriedby ay vertical' pipe 21 which is provided-witha base28 by which it is tl'xeditotheV fixed liquid supply'tube-23, the-pipe" 21=being provided' with orifces29' throughwhich theiliquidfrom the lsupply tube 2-3j caniiow into the tank; leather washers 30 and 3| are provided to prevent leakage.

The liquid is supplied to the cylinder under pressure, the whole cylinder is air-tight.

In a modied arrangement shown in Fig. 4 a gas or air tube 43 extends up the centre of the filler tube and carries at its lower end the plunger 40 slidable in the valve sleeve 31 provided with liquor ports- 38, said air tube extending through the plunger and in the position when the liquor ports 38 are open contacts with the opening of an air passage 44 and consequently in communication with'thezinterior of the bottle being iilled.

After the iilling operation is completed, the bottle' is heldv under pressure for a short while to allow. the liquor. to settle before allowing the header to return to its original position, so that the iilledbottle can be removed.

shoulda bottle burst or collapse the header will immediately shut off and return to its original position. thus; avoiding waste inV any shape or: form; of; gas, or water, thus maintaining a steady'pressure.` inthe` main filling cylinder.'v

The' construction ofl my headers allows' of easy cleaning` and simple dismantling' and re-assembling of. the parts, as: there are no corners or recesses'it` allows considerably steadier nlling and presentszarr exceedingly simple and` efiicient iilling; header which is operated solely by the bottles The only mechanical means necessary is provision. to lift the bottle.

What: Ii claim. asy my invention and desire to secureV by LettersPatent of the United States is:

Thecornbinationf ina bottle filling machine ofv aliquid. supply tank having a.' floor formedlby' a flexible centrally perforated diaphragm, a vertical fe'edi tube` for conducting the7 liquid insaid tank into a bottle, said feed'tube being fixed gas and liquid-tight in the perforation of said diapliragmI and' having an opening at its upper end into saidt'ank through which opening the liquid in; the tanl'r constantly has access, a' tix-ed cup shapedmember secured to said tank immediately below saididiaphragmthe outer rimofi whichis secured: to the rimA off' s'aid` cup shaped member,v said diaphragm cupshaped member' andv the outer peripheryof" said feedtubebelow saidI dlaphragm forming a positively closed chamber of variable capacityI intowhi'chthe liquid' cannot enter,A a depending extension ofvv said; cup-Y shaped member having aA verticaliborein whichsaid'feed tube' is-slidablavanV air tubewithin said feed'tube; a-bottle filling valve at the-bottomendof saidiair tube; an air'evacuation valveiat the top of said 4air tubezsit'uated above the normal levelof` the liquid in said tank and a collar secured to the feedtube adjacentY the" lower' end thereof with whichA the mouth of a bottle can engage to liftY said" feed tube` to openi saidvalves during upward movementl of the bottle"substantiallyas described.

OTTOPOWLEY. 

